


Black Ice

by DeanRH



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Dom/sub Undertones, M/M, Snowed In, Wings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-07-02
Packaged: 2020-05-13 17:54:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 19,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19256224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeanRH/pseuds/DeanRH
Summary: Dean, Sam, and Castiel find themselves in a motel during a storm. The snow keeps falling, and falling, and falling...like it wants to get inside.





	1. Gas Station

The snow was ludicrously bright and just about everywhere as Dean pulled into the log-cabin monstrosity serving as a gas station this far out.

The door of the Impala creaked as he got out to stand and stretch in the parking lot. Snow and ice crunched in that strange muted squeal particular to cold environments. He squinted around at the neverending farmland, a few houses here and there across rolling plains of snow.

He stretched, walking around the car to the gas station's door. His bones seemed to creak just like the snow beneath his shitkickers. He was getting old, he thought ruefully. Either way, a coffee sounded perfect and getting the hell out of all the blinding sunlight would be great. For some reason, winter sun reflecting on snow made him feel slightly nauseous and if he and Sam were going to fight a ghoul the last thing he needed was to be sick, or asleep.

Bells jangled at the door as he walked in to the faux log cabin. The impression hadn't ended at the doorway and it seemed like the person who had designed the interior wanted to force everyone to have a good time whether they liked it or not. Christmas decorations still hung from the ceiling. A large wooden cutout of a moose wearing a scarf and holding a mug of something hot grinned at him from one of the display counters. Dean grinned back at it, thinking it would be an awesome prank to play on his brother in other, better circumstances.

Whoever owned this gas station had a lot of money, or at least had been rich prior to decking this place out like it was the perfect Christmas holiday log home but had somehow turned into a gas station in the middle of nowhere instead.

"Hiya!" called out a cheery middle-aged white lady, her whole face berry-pink. She was wearing a sweater with a moose pattern. "What can I do ye for?"

She got an eyeful of Dean for the first time and blushed brighter than her already-cherry-red face.

"Oh, I - ah, don't mind me," she said. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes, handsome?"

Dean licked his lips and tried on his most winning grin.

"Just in for a coffee," he said.

"Coming right up, sweetheart," she replied. "You want somethin' fancy? We got cappucino an' stuff."

"Nah," Dean replied. "Just black."

"No milk?" she asked, and then with a wink, "How 'bout some sugar?"

Dean shook his head.

"I'm good," he said.

She slid the black coffee across the counter.

"I'm sure you are," she said. "A buck fifty. And come around again sometime."

"Just passin' through," said Dean.

"You just let me know if you change your mind, gorgeous," said the woman. 

Dean paid the money and left.

***

Driving Baby in midwinter, especially this far inland, was an exercise in patience. Sam had advocated snow tires and Dean had argued but eventually he won out and Dean put the chains on the car.

"The Impala's too old, it'll get stuck in the snow," said Sam. Dean was duly offended but also aware that the Impala's needs were much different than the needs of a modern vehicle, and so on went the snow tires and the winter chains with minimal grumbling. 

"This is why we should always take cases in the Pacific Northwest," he told Sam as they worked. "Worst thing that happens there is a little rain."

"Dean, nobody is going to buy that," said Sam. "Imagine if we only hunted in one region of the States."

"Makes more sense," said Dean. "Two people can't cover the entire Continental US. What about Alaska and Hawai'i? What about the rest of the world? Places like Ireland must be lousy with ghosts."

"We could go out there," Sam mused. "Hawai'i, I mean. Gotta be some excuse, right?"

"We were in Florida," said Dean. "I died. Like, a hundred times."

"Doesn't mean it'll happen again," said Sam. "We could use a vacation."

"And leave Baby?" Dean asked.  _And **fly?** , _he didn't say.

"All done here," said Sam, standing up and brushing himself off. "Think about it, Dean."

He stalked off to the motel room. Dean watched him go.

_Hawai'i,_ he thought.  _Huh. Why not._

***

The road was home.

There wasn't really anything else he could say but that. Sure, the bunker had been nice while it lasted, but it was the highway that pinged all his homesickness buttons and called him back again and again.

Dean found solace in driving. It calmed him. Sometimes he'd just drive, out past the wheatfields, or on the A1A down the Florida coast. It didn't matter. All that mattered was the drive. If he could somehow live on the road and never leave it, Dean would be content.

This particular afternoon, driving back to the motel along these country roads, he was alone.

The car had that smell all cars do while driving in the late-afternoon sunlight; stuffy and warm, with the leather scent permeating everything. Old cheeseburger wrappers littered the floor; although Dean was meticulous about himself he didn't pay quite as much attention to Baby's interior. Long habits formed on the road, and occasionally the garbage piled up enough he'd pull over and dump out everything at the next gas station. If he was feeling fancy, he'd pay for a car wash and have the guys do it while he sucked on a Slurpee and stared at Baby through the window, getting attacked by those giant blue Muppet-lookin' things they used to wash the car. Sometimes he'd pick up one of those pine tree air fresheners but after a while he realized that they just made the car smell worse on these long afternoons.

Not a lot exciting happened way out here, especially not in wintertime. He'd be bored to tears out here. He already tried suburbia and hated that. Maybe a big city, where the noise and activity would distract him, both from the boredom and from those dark nights when the memories of Hell came calling.

He shook his head. He stared out at the snow. He wished he had sunglasses.

***

When Dean pulled into the motel parking lot, his heart skipped a beat when he saw a familiar figure standing there, staring up at the heavens. 

Castiel's tan trenchcoat stood out against the red of the motel, and he squinted up at the sky as if it could give him the answers to everything. Hell, maybe it did. Dean had no idea how an angel's mind worked.

"Careful, you'll get stuck like that," he said. Castiel turned his attention away from the sky and trained the full force of his ice-blue gaze on Dean. He'd go to his grave before he admitted that he wanted to go to his knees and soak his jeans from kneeling in the ice and snow every time Cas did that to him. He excused it as some kind of weird knee-jerk reaction to being under the scrutiny of an angel. Must be inherent in humanity, right? Awe.

He used the word all the time, but not in its real meaning:  _awesome._

If anything he'd seen was that, it was Cas. And he'd met God.

"I cannot get stuck like that, Dean," Cas intoned. 

"It's, heh, it's a thing humans say," Dean laughed. "What're you looking at up there?"

"Something's wrong," said Cas.

"Well, yeah," said Dean. "There always is."

"No," Cas said. "Not the usual. Have you noticed anything odd about the weather?"

"Odd how?" Dean asked. "Sunny, winter, Midwest, snow. A little bright for my liking. I always used to get sick when it was like this - "

Castiel's eyes narrowed.

"Sick?" he demanded. "When did this start?"

"I don't know," said Dean. "When I was little, I guess? Just started up again today, but I figure it's just one of those weird human things."

"The temperature is dropping," said Cas. "We need to get you inside."

"C'mon, Cas, it's just winter," said Dean, although now that Castiel mentioned it, he did feel a strange chill in his bones. "Still, it'd be nice to warm up. Thinkin' we could go to the diner for a late breakfast, whaddaya think?"

"You are going nowhere, Dean Winchester," intoned Castiel. "You and your brother are to stay indoors. If there is to be food, I will fetch it for you."

"Are you sure about - ?"

"Do not question me," Cas said. "Get inside."

"Okay, okay," said Dean, holding up his hands. He was happy enough to get indoors anyway. There was a real chill in the air.

***

Castiel had never been anyone before.

One of the Host, a singular entity but a part of the many. 

And now, a voice called to him  _in particular_ , prayers to  _Castiel, Cas_ , and it was that, he thinks, the thing that broke his halo, in the end.

But then, he considers - Naomi said that she'd had to re-set him more than once, the angel who came off the line wrong, a crack in his chassis. 

And he'd finally seen God. He'd been remade, over and over again, by God. His favorite angel.

He looked at the man walking through the motel door, out of the cold. Nothing particularly unique about him, nothing out of the ordinary. Just a man.

_God brought me back because I'm in love_ , thought Castiel.  _With humanity._

He grinned to himself, and followed Dean inside.

***

Sam was sitting at the corner table, his long hair in his eyes.

"Swear to God, a pair of scissors," Dean muttered, and Sam smiled, shaking his head, as Dean reached into the doughnut box and took out a bear claw, stuffing it into his face.

"Dean, can you - a napkin - okay," Sam said, as the bear claw disappeared into Dean's face. Dean grinned with his mouth full of food. "Gross, Dean."

"I'm charming," said Dean, his face covered in powdered sugar.

Castiel sighed and his eyes rolled up towards heaven.

"What?!" Dean asked, grabbing a beer and bouncing onto the motel bed, which creaked dangerously beneath his weight. "C'mon, bear claws are awesome, you should try one."

He leaned against the wall. Sam pointedly ignored him as he started flipping through channels on the ancient TV.

"Cas," said Sam, "we're going to check out reports tonight, you want to come? Sounds like a ghoul."

"It's not a ghoul, Sam, and you're not going anywhere," Castiel said.

"What?" Sam asked.

"Oh yeah," Dean said. "Didn't tell you. Cas says we gotta stay inside because it's cold. Cute, huh?"

"Dean, you need to take this seriously," said Castiel. "There's something strange here."

"It's winter, Cas," said Dean. "Everything sucks."

"This is not winter as you know it," said Castiel. 

"What's going on?" asked Sam.

Castiel walked into the room and stood near Dean on the bed, who visibly swallowed. Cas felt pleased that his presence and power had such an effect on the object of his affections, but did not remark on it aside from a smirk.

"I don't know its origin," said Castiel, "but I am aware that something is coming. The temperature is dropping faster than usual. Snow is on its way."

"Winter is coming," said Dean, and laughed.

"What can we do?" Sam asked, ignoring his idiot brother.

"For the time being, stay indoors," said Castiel. " _Both_ of you. No matter what you see or hear, do not go outside."

With that, Castiel vanished, the sound of wings echoing through the room.

***

"Fuck that," said Dean. "Who's he think he is, pushing us around?"

"Dean," Sam tried to reason with him. "Cas wouldn't be telling us to stay inside for no reason. You go out there, you are just as stupid as all those people we tell not to mess with things but they always step outside the salt circle! You're being stupid, Dean."

"Dean this, Dean that," grumbled Dean. "You guys sound like a skipping record."

"It's not -" Sam made an exasperated noise. "He's not trying to order you around. There's something  _out there_."

Sam walked to the window and pulled the curtains aside. His hazel eyes widened and his mouth dropped open.

" _Shit._ "

Dean hopped off the bed and joined his brother at the window. He almost dropped his beer.

Snow was whirling around outside. It had already covered the parking lot and the Impala, and the fat flakes were falling down in a way that was clearly unnatural.

"Stay inside," Dean told Sam. 

Sam just rolled his eyes.

***

The window was creaking under the weight of all the snow.

"Aw, Baby," Dean said mournfully. "You better be okay."

"We've got bigger things to worry about than whether the Impala is safe," said Sam. Dean glared at him.

"Where the hell's Cas?" Dean said. The reply was the beating of wings and Castiel looking down at him with his eyes sparking blue, as if he were challenging Dean to question his reliability.

"Winter's curse," Castiel said abruptly. "You're caught up in it."

"Great," said Dean. "Then let's get out of here, problem solved, right?"

"Wrong," Cas replied. "You'll bring it with you, wherever you go. The curse is centered on you."

 


	2. Snow

"You say this thing is centered on me?" Dean asked.

"Yes," Cas replied. "As far as I can tell."

"So it's only a danger to you both if we're all together?"

"Dean - "

"Answer the question, Cas!"

Castiel looked at Dean as though he would smite him.

"Do not take that tone with me, Dean Winchester," he said. "But yes, that's true."

"Then take Sammy and get the hell out of here."

Sam stood up from the table where he had been sitting.

"No way, Dean, I'm not gonna just leave you here!"

"Sam, we have spent enough time dying for each other and killing for each other," said Dean, "selling our souls, you name it. This time I've got an out and we don't gotta kill anybody. So please. Go. You're more help doing research somewhere out there."

"As much as I hate to admit it, Dean is right," said Castiel. Sam looked as if he were about to argue when Cas put his hand on Sam's shoulder and they vanished in a flap of wings.

Dean ran a hand through his hair.

"Great," he said. "All right."

He walked over to the table and sat down.

"Guess that's me, then," he said. "If the boredom doesn't get to me first."

"Dean."

Dean nearly jumped out of his skin, looking up into those ice-blue eyes.

"Cas, what the hell?" said Dean. "I thought you and Sam were going somewhere safe!"

"We did," said Castiel. "I left him at a Starbucks. He can research from there."

"A  _Starbucks_?" Dean asked. "Cas, you gotta get him out of town, he's not safe -"

"He's in Hawai'i," said Castiel flatly.

Dean glared at him.

"Oh, so  _Sam_ gets to go to Hawai'i," he grumbled. "While I sit here waiting to be buried under twenty tons of fuckin' snow."

He kicked the table in frustration, and got up to pace.

"And what the hell is with you lately, anyway?" Dean asked. "You got some kind of attitude problem. Missing the old stick-up-the-ass warrior of heaven days?"

Castiel just stared at him, cool and steady. Dean faltered. He stopped pacing and looked at Cas's dress slacks, overwhelmed by the urge to feel them under his hands.

_Shit. What the fuck is wrong with **me**? _thought Dean.  _Must be stir-crazy. Thinking about being stuck here, maybe forever, with no chance for tail._

But he looked at Castiel, and he swallowed.

***

"I'm here to protect you," said Castiel. "As best I can."

"All right," said Dean. "Then spill. You've got info. What's this 'winter's curse' thing?"

Castiel sighed and sat down in a chair.

"You mentioned feeling nauseous in childhood during the winter sun," said Castiel. Dean nodded. "Well, this is how the curse manifests itself, if it's cast early enough in someone's life."

"Some fucker  _cursed_ me when I was a kid?" Dean demanded.

Castiel gave him that same unruffled look that Dean was beginning to feel was the equivalent of cool water in the desert. His stillness took away some of Dean's aggressive anxiety.

"Your brother was cursed as a baby," he said. "It is not that surprising that you were, too."

"By Yellow Eyes?" asked Dean, blanching in spite of himself. 

"No," said Castiel. "He had a defined purpose. This would've been done to you for kicks, because your family were hunters. Something they wouldn't detect until it was too late."

"Great," said Dean. "So what do we do about it?"

"There's no cure," said Castiel. "Everyone born under winter's curse has died. No question."

Dean stared at him. Then he exploded.

"What the  _fuck,_ Cas, you can't just  _tell_ me that!" he shouted. 

Castiel stared at him.

"How else would you know?" he asked.

They gazed at each other for a long time. Until Dean realized it was uncomfortably long and turned around, pressing his hands through his hair.

"Ah hell," he said. "This is just like hell, actually - waiting for my time. Dogs ripping me apart. What happens now? The snow - "

"Drowns you," Castiel supplied. 

" _Drowns_ me?" Dean asked. "How?"

"First it makes sure that you are closed off from the world," said Castiel. "Then, eventually, you find yourself growing colder. Your throat fills with snow, and eventually your body becomes it."

Dean stared at him in horror.

"Yeah?" he said. "And then what?"

"You melt," said Castiel. He had delivered this information in a clinical way, as if he had been listing the ingredients off a cereal packet.

"And there's nothing I can do?" asked Dean.

"Not that I am aware," said Castiel.

The wind outside grew louder, and the snow brushed at the windows.

Waiting. Waiting to find its way inside.

***

"So what do we do?" Dean asked.

"What would you like to do?" asked Castiel.

"How long have I got?" 

"Three days, maybe more," said Castiel. "There isn't a lot of clear information about this curse, given that the victims are found after the fact."

Dean brightened.

"Hey, that's great!" he said. "Sam's a genius, he'll find a way out of this for me."

"While I appreciate Sam's considerable intelligence," said Castiel, "I doubt that he will find an answer angels have been searching for all over the world for millennia."

Dean stared hard at him.

"I believe in Sam," he said. "Besides, you guys aren't exactly batting a hundred in the information department."

Castiel considered this for a moment.

"Does this mean I get last requests and all that?" Dean asked, grinning. "Like, last meal? Cheeseburgers? All the ladies I want?"

"No," said Castiel.

"Aw, c'mon, Cas," said Dean. "You can just blink out and bring all that stuff here."

"I moved Sam to keep him out of danger," said Castiel. "I will not endanger any other lives in this way."

"But cheeseburgers?" asked Dean hopefully.

"I will provide for your survival," said Castiel.

"Well then," said Dean, "What do you want to do? Uno? Yahtzee?"

Castiel considered him for a moment.

"I had plans of my own," he said.

"Oh yeah?" asked Dean. "Like what?"

"Like this," said Castiel, and he leaned down to kiss the smirk right off Dean's face.

 


	3. Winter

A thousand thoughts were all trying to shout over each other in Dean's head. Dizzy excitement, shock, cautious arousal - 

\- but Dean won over in the end by being an utter idiot about it.

"Whoa! Hey!" he shouted, pushing Cas away even as he wanted to draw the angel closer. "What the hell do you think you're doing, Cas?"

Castiel looked at him. His frown deepened.

"My apologies," he ground out. "I don't know what came over me."

Dean stared at him.  _Oh. It was some hocus-pocus crap. Don't feel disappointed, don't feel disappointed...who, me? I'm not disappointed! What the hell -_

He decided to cut himself off before that train of thought reached any kind of station.

"You keepin' something from me, Cas?" he asked. "You gotta level with me here, man."

Cas sighed in exasperation.

"I really  _don't know,_ Dean," he said. "I know of the winter's curse, but that's everything."

"Fat lot of good you are," said Dean.

" _What did I tell you about that tone?"_  snapped Cas, his eyes flashing blue for a moment.

Dean recoiled, and felt, again, that utter  _need_ to get on his knees and grovel before Castiel, angel of the Lord.

_What the fuck what the fuck what the fuck?_  

His thoughts were a mess, but they kept circling back around to that. He suddenly realised he was cowering, and shook himself.

"Man, snap out of it," he muttered to himself.  _You don't wanna give him a blowjob **that** bad._

_Do you?_

"Is it hot in here?" asked Castiel, loosening his tie.

_Oh God. Look anywhere else, look anywhere else..._

"Okay, Cas, you gotta stop," said Dean. "Whatever's going on here, this isn't normal. You're acting  _really_ weird, man."

"And you aren't?!" Cas demanded. "When I spoke just then you became so subservient you would have done anything I asked!"

_Oh. So you noticed._

Dean tried to laugh it off, because he's an idiot.

"Right, okay," he said, standing up and pacing to get away from the scrutiny of the angel currently performing an awkward striptease. "There's something more going on here. I don't kneel, and you don't overheat."

" _You'll kneel if I ask you to,_ " Castiel barked, and then had the decency to look sheepish.

"The hell, Cas?!" Dean asked, although the command made his stomach do flips. He could feel it, too, the rush of sensation, the desire to do exactly as Castiel said.

"I think -" Castiel said, as he shed his trenchcoat and suit jacket all in one motion of his shoulders, "I think I might know something."

He ripped his shirt open, the buttons flying and skittering across the floor.

Dean's mouth went dry as he stared at Castiel's bare chest. The angel was panting. He fell forward on the bed, and groaned with pain.

Suddenly, a pair of great black wings emerged from his back. Despite Castiel's shaking and cursing, the wings were graceful and calm, spreading out and over the bed with a delicate precision that had Dean clutching his phone so hard it leaped out of his hand and clattered onto the floor.

" _Holy shit, Cas,_ " Dean breathed.

"It's not mating season," said Castiel, in a voice full of confusion.

Just then, the phone rang. Dean jumped, and then grabbed for it, fumbling it and hitting the correct button by accident.

"Uh. Hello?" he asked. He could hear some kind of music in the background.

"Dean?" Sam's voice was difficult to hear over the noise.

_Wait, I know that song,_ thought Dean.  _That's Braddah Iz._

"How's Hawai'i," he asked flatly.

Sam laughed.

"It is  _so awesome_ , dude, we're having our vacation once all this blows over," he said.

"All right, rub it in. Talk," Dean told him.

"Yeah, yeah," said Sam. "So get this. Have you heard of the Cailleach Bheur?"

"Gesundheit," said Dean.

"Dean, Scottish Gaelic is an important minority language and the Scots have suffered from their language not being 'understandable' to the English, so if -"

"Okay, okay, tell Scotland I'm sorry," said Dean. "What about it? Is it an it?"

"It's a her," said Sam. "The Queen of Winter."

"Uh. Okay?" Dean said, confused.

"A folklorist called Alexander MacDonald named her Beira," he said. "Anyway, once every few generations, she needs a new husband. Every man who she chooses dies of old age, and she creates the next generation with him."

"And what does this have to do with - everything?" he asked, glancing over at Cas, who was now holding himself as still as possible while the great black wings trembled minutely. He nearly dropped the phone.

"Well, it says here that she gifts the next man with  _all his earthly desires_ ," said Sam. "Sort of like a last meal thing."

Dean looked at the phone in dismay.

" _Earthly desires_?" Dean demanded. "No way in hell I asked for this crazy-ass snowstorm, I can't even drive Baby."

"Try wishing for something," Sam suggested.

"C'mon, you know that's dangerous," said Dean.

"Humor me."

"Fine."

Dean was startled when a plate of cheeseburgers appeared in front of him, steaming hot, the cheese dripping down the side. The aroma filled the air.

"Hey Cas," Dean said brightly. "Guess you don't need to go fetch me those cheeseburgers after all."

Castiel turned to look at him, his eyes burning blue. Dean felt his throat tighten. And his pants.

"Uh, okay," said Dean. "Say it worked, and say I believe it. What, uh. What can we do about it?"

"I'm on it," said Sam. "Don't have many details yet, but - travel may be involved."

"Travel?" asked Dean uneasily.

"Yeah," said Sam. "Flying, specifically."

"Okay," said Dean, trying to count in his head to calm down from the fear of an upcoming flight and from a half-naked angel in his bed. "Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"There's something wrong with Cas," said Dean. "He's acting - he's - "

"There's nothing wrong with Cas," said Sam, pointedly.

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Dean asked.

Sam sighed.

"How are you even my brother," he said. "Trust me, Dean. Anything happening around you right now is something that you wished for."

"Wished for?" asked Dean, watching Castiel hold himself back from doing...whatever it was he wanted to do.

"Doesn't have to be actively," Sam said. " _All your earthly desires_ , Dean."

Then he made a sound that Dean almost suspected was a snicker. His own brother. Snickering at him.

"Maybe some heavenly ones, too," said Sam.

"All right, that's it," Dean said, exasperated. "Phone call's over. You let me know when you get a bead on this thing."

"So what exactly  _is_ happening with Cas -" Sam began to say before Dean cut off the call.

Castiel finally released himself from the position he had been keeping.

" _Finally_ ," he said, standing up and stalking over to Dean, midnight-black wings flaring high. " _Submit_ ,  _mate, for I am come to bring you joy._ "

 

 

 


	4. Wings

"Cas," Dean began. "Cas, wait -"

Castiel's kiss was brutal and claiming. Dean went weak in the knees, but Cas held him up. Then he lifted him, easy as anything, and carried him to the bed.

"Can we talk about this, Cas, please -"

" _Mate,_ " sighed Castiel, and divested Dean of his leather jacket, then his plaid shirt. Dean put his hands up on Castiel's chest and  _shoved._

"Hey!" Dean shouted. "Cas! Earth to Castiel!"

The slight buzzing noise in the room subsided, and the blue light in Castiel's eyes faded to their usual unearthly hue. He looked down at himself, and then at Dean.

"Dean?" he asked, uncertain.

"Uh," he said. "yeah, buddy. I was about to get out the water hose and cool you off."

"What do you m-" and then Castiel noticed his wings. His mouth dropped open in horror and he pulled them in. 

"I'm sorry, I never wanted you to see me like this," he said, ashamed.

"What do you mean? Those things are badass," said Dean. He watched as they fluffed up at the praise. Castiel tentatively stretched them out again.

"What's going on with you, man?" asked Dean.

Castiel blushed.

"Cas?" he pushed.

"It's, ah, it's not of import," said Castiel.

"The hell it's 'not of import'," said Dean. "You were all over me."

Dean could have sworn that Cas just got redder. 

"I," he began. "When - it's mating season - I."

"Better with the English here," said Dean.

" _Ithinkofyouasmymate,_ " he said in a rush. Dean's eyebrows nearly reached his hairline.

"You  _what_ ," he said.

"But it's not mating season," Castiel said, without explaining further.

The angel turned away from him. This was a mistake, in Dean's opinion.

_Oh God his trousers are half undone and slipping down his ass,_ he thought. He stared at the little dimples between Castiel's hipbones, wanting to lick into them, and -

_Whoa_ , Dean thought.  _Is_ _this something I want?_

"Please make up your mind," Castiel said in a strained voice. 

"What are you talking about?"

Castiel looked over his shoulder. His eyes were sparking blue again.

"I can  _sense longing, Dean,_ " he intoned.

Dean was awestruck again, by the lithe power and grace held within Castiel's body, and that strange, overpowering urge to worship him.

"If, uh, you don't, mate?" asked Dean. "Will you like...die? Or something?"

Castiel rolled his eyes, looking supremely pissed.

"Of course not," he growled. "But I may kill  _you_ if you don't tell me what you want."

Dean went through various scenarios in his head, all of which came up with  _getting laid! cha ching!_ like a one-armed bandit.

Then he got an eyeful of who, and what exactly, would be doing the laying, and shivered. 

_What the hell,_ he thought.  _You only live once. Or, well. You know what I mean._

"You should not underestimate me," said Castiel. "I told you something similar, long ago."

"Yeah, yeah," Dean said, cocky. "C'mon. Go for it. It's a gift from the old lady. Wouldn't be nice to turn her down. Rude, really."

Castiel stood there, an arrow poised, the bowstring taut.

"Are you certain about this, Dean?" asked Castiel.

"Sure, yeah," said Dean. "I consent."

The blue in Castiel's eyes sparked, and flared. Dean had a moment to second guess his choices when Castiel tore through his old black t-shirt.

" _You have always underestimated me,"_ breathed Castiel. " _No more._ "

He pulled off Dean's worn-out Levis and caressed him.

" _Beautiful,_ " said Castiel. " _My mate._ "

Those enormous wings unfurled, standing high and proud. Dean stared up at them in wonder, as Castiel touched him, electric blue running through his fingertips. Dean felt himself harden impossibly. He was so hard he couldn't even think.

" _Turn over,_ " Castiel directed. " _Present to me._ "

Dean was surprised when he did exactly as he was told.  _What are you doing?_ he thought hazily.  _Rolling over like a bitch in heat._  But he couldn't deny how intensely he felt, how much he absolutely wanted to be owned.

"Fuck," said Dean, as Cas pressed his fingers into his hole. " _Fuck,_ Cas."

" _Yes,"_ said Castiel, his voice still mixed with that strange, high-pitched whine. The angel patiently worked Dean open, and then lined himself up.

"Need it," Dean babbled. "Need it so bad, Cas, please."

The pleasure and pain from Castiel easing himself inside made sparks of light flash in Dean's eyes. 

" _Accept me, my mate,_ " Castiel said, rocking slowly into him. " _You will belong to me now. I will own you, body and soul, with our union._ "

Dean didn't care anymore. He was so high on the pleasure coursing through him all he could do was keen and sob with want. He accidentally brushed his hard, leaking cock and shouted in surprise, it was so sensitive. He was alive with need.

" _Yes, that's it,_ " Castiel soothed. " _Find your pleasure. Obey me, my mate, touch yourself."_

Dean let out a whine. He put a tentative hand around his cock and hissed at the intensity of the sensation.

"It's too good, Cas," he moaned. "It's so - it's so much."

" _I know, beautiful lover,_ " said Cas, thrusting up into him, pulling him back onto his cock, as he lifted him from the bed and stroked his hand from his stomach to his chest. " _It's so much, isn't it? I have wanted to claim you for so, so long. Wouldn't you like to come for  me, pet?"_

Alarm bells were sounding in the back of Dean's mind, but all he wanted was  _more._ More of Cas, more of this, forever. 

"Yes," said Dean. "Yes, I want to belong to you, Cas, please, please just let me -"

"No," said Castiel, and gave a dark chuckle when Dean protested. " _Oh, little mate, how lovely you are when you need. Once you come, and you accept my seed, you are mine. **And you will do as I say.** "_

Something about the commanding tone in Castiel's voice had Dean writhing and desperate, for anything, for a touch, anything to relieve the desire stoked inside of him. He had never felt this way in all his life.

" _You feel this?"_ asked Cas, tightening his grip on Dean, his wings fanning out in a display of utter dominance. " _This is a feeling you will only get with me. No one else will satisfy you from now on. You will beg, if I ask you. You will get down on your knees for me._ "

"I will," Dean promised. "Wanna get on my knees for you, Cas, wanted to - for years -  _unh -"_

Castiel pushed Dean back down onto the bed, and a strong hand pressed his face into the mattress.

" _You will take what I give you,_ " he snarled, and began to slam into Dean in a slow building crescendo. " _You will do as I say. You **will** belong to me._"

Dean opened his eyes, and could see the great black wings shaking, and the blue electricity flowing from Castiel's eyes, could feel it in his hands, could feel it inside himself, as the angel slammed home again and again. 

Suddenly, Castiel grabbed Dean's cock.

" _Fucking give it to me,_ " he whispered into Dean's ear, and Dean swore, bucking forward, and came all over the bedspread. Castiel gripped Dean's thighs hard enough to bruise, and with one final, violent thrust, bit down on Dean's shoulder and came deep inside him.

There was a blue flash of light, like a circle around the two of them.

" _Mine_ ," growled Castiel, before letting Dean go. Dean collapsed on the bed, completely fucked out. He was asleep nearly as soon as his head hit the pillow.

" _Good,_ " said Castiel, stroking his hands down Dean's side. " _Mate. Mine._ "

" _Soon, the change will come._ "


	5. Distractions

Dean came to slowly, surfacing from a dream. He felt warm and safe, which was so startling that it pulled him awake.

_Feathers...wing?_ said his muddled brain, as he tentatively reached out to push at the blanket he'd pulled over his head.

A low rumble and a strong arm pulling him flush against a very warm,  _very naked_ body dropped the memories of the night before into his head.

"Mornin', sunshine," said Dean. The wing moved down and Dean was delighted to see Castiel's grumpy face. He was not a fan of mornings.

They kissed lazily, sloppily, from their position, Cas spooning him from behind. Dean waited for the shame, the self-hatred, the - anything but  _love_ and  _want_ and  _need_ \- to hit him, but it didn't. He felt free, unashamed, floating among the clouds. Even the room smelled good, fresh, cool like spearmint.

Then he remembered the rest of the previous day and gasped, pushing himself up in the bed.

The window had cracked against the weight of the snow.

"Cas!" Dean cried, shaking the angel awake. Castiel blinked up at him a few times, and then looked where Dean was pointing.

" _Ignore it, beloved_ ," said Castiel. 

"But Cas!" Dean said. Strangely, he could already feel his alarm draining away.

" _You'll be safe with me_ ," Castiel reassured him. " _Now. Get on your knees._ "

Dean found himself complying, although he wasn't sure why. All his arguments faded away as he stared up at those beautiful wings, and the stern face of the man looking down at him. He took Castiel into his mouth without a word, and suckled gently at the tip of his cock.

" _That's it,_ " praised Castiel. " _Worship me._ "

He tapped Dean's lips.

" _Open, beloved,_ " he said gently.

And Dean did. He took Castiel down to the root, and flushed with pleasure at the appreciative moan from above him. Castiel gripped his hair and began thrusting into his mouth. Dean was rock hard so fast he couldn't believe it. He started moaning around Castiel's cock like a whore.

" _You feel so good, don't you, beloved?_ " Castiel asked as he pushed further into Dean's throat. Dean did his best to take it, scraping his nails down Castiel's inner thighs, whining with his own desire. " _Like nothing you've ever felt._ "

Dean could only moan in agreement and then Castiel shoved his head forward, grinding his cock into his throat. Dean briefly wondered why he wasn't choking, and was breathing just fine, when another shock of lust electrified his body, distracting him. 

Castiel drew back, out of his mouth. Dean was panting, saliva stretching from his lips to Cas's cock. He looked up at the angel standing over him, feathers shaking slightly.

"Please," Dean begged. "Please, let me worship you."

"They do say  _love is a sacrament that should be taken kneeling_ ," smirked Castiel, tracing Dean's swollen lips with a fingertip. " _Open, beloved._ "

Dean opened his mouth, and Castiel began jacking himself.

"Cas, what -" Dean started to say, when the bright electric blue flashed in Castiel's eyes.

He put his cock next to Dean's mouth, gave a long, satisfied sigh, and came all over his face.

Dean had a moment to register his own shocked horror, just before his own orgasm hit him like a freight train.  A loud  _unh_  and his cock was spurting across the floorboards without ever having been touched.

Another flash of blue, a circle of light, around them. But it was gone before Dean could even be sure it was there.

" _That's right,_ " he said. " _Sleep now, mate. You will need it._ "

And Dean obediently crawled back into the bed to sleep.

***

A few hours later, Dean woke blearily to Castiel humping at him slowly, languidly taking his time, dragging his cock along his ass and thrusting up gently. He kept making little moans every time he thrust.

Instantly, Dean was hard again, filled with a need so overwhelming and demanding it was as if he hadn't had sex in years.

" _Fuck, Cas,_ " Dean muttered, pushing back.

" _Yes, that's it,_ " said Castiel. " _Beloved. Mate. Take your pleasure from me._ "

Dean reached back for Castiel's hand and placed it on his own cock. He shouted as the contact made him thrust inadvertently. Castiel's hand tightened around his cock and Dean was panting for it, chasing the high.

" _Let yourself go_ ," whispered Castiel. " _Lose yourself in me._ "

There was that hum again, behind his voice, maybe his true voice. Dean didn't care, he just  _wanted._

The phone rang.

" _Leave it,_ " Castiel said, his hand moving faster on Dean's cock. Dean threw his head back against Castiel's shoulder, giving voice to a loud moan. " _Stay here, with me_."

The phone rang again. Dean tried to move away from Castiel, but he couldn't stop thrusting into his hand. He felt out of control, insane with it, how badly he needed it.

"Ah,  _fuck,_ " Dean said, taking huge gulps of air as he thrust into the tunnel of his hand uncontrollably. " _Ah fuck Cas feels so - fuck, fuck, fuck - ah - ah - ah -_ "

" _Give it to me,_ " said Cas, greedy, hungry, alight with blue.

The phone rang again.

_It's probably Sam_ , thought Dean. 

"Sorry, Cas," Dean said, and pushed him away. Dean whined a bit with the loss of Castiel's hand, but moved off the bed and picked up the phone. He turned around to look at Castiel, debauched and gorgeous, laying in the bed and stroking himself lazily. The bright electric blue in his eyes had faded a bit. 

"Hold that thought," said Dean, and answered the phone. "What? Kinda in the middle of something here."

"Dean," Sam said. "Dean. I really,  _really_ need you to focus for a second."

Dean closed his eyes. Unfortunately, the scenes playing out behind them were not any less arousing than the one currently playing out in front of them. He pinched the bridge of his nose and breathed.

"All right," said Dean. "You got me."

"You know how you said there was something wrong with Cas, earlier?" asked Sam.

"Sure," said Dean. "Think it's okay now though,  _really_ gotta go, Sam -"

"Castiel is here with me, in Hawai'i," said Sam. 

"What do you mean? He's right here."

" _That's not Castiel._ "

Then Sam muttered something he didn't quite catch.

Dean looked at the Castiel on the bed. The angel stood up, wings flaring, and walked over to him. He dropped to his knees and took Dean into his mouth. Dean's eyes rolled back into his head, and he was just about to hang up the phone.

"Hello, Dean," came out of the receiver, just as Dean looked down at Castiel swallowing his cock, and he came so hard he blacked out.


	6. The Island

When he'd come to again, he was alone.

Scrambling for the phone, he picked it up.

"'lo?" he demanded.

"Dean?" asked Castiel's voice, confused. Dean sighed with relief. He was still there. Always there. Waiting for him.

"Cas, I -"

"Whoever you're with, Dean," said Castiel, in a regular voice free from the lust-tinged, loving way the other Castiel had spoken to him. "Whoever is there with you, it isn't me."

Suddenly, Dean was aware of how  _intensely cold_ he felt. He struggled to his feet.

"Fuck," he swore.

"Dean? What is it? What's wrong?" Castiel demanded.

"The windows are broken. The snow is pouring in. And I'm freezing."

"I'll be right there."

***

A moment later, Castiel appeared in the room with the sound of wings. 

Dean didn't have the presence of mind to put clothes on, nor did he care. 

The angel leaned down and pressed two fingers to his forehead.

"Ah, hell," said Dean, sitting up and rubbing his arms. "It's fucking  _freezing_ in here!"

Cas grabbed a blanket from the bed and wrapped it around him. 

"You had hypothermia," he said. "You were nearly dead."

"Yeah well," said Dean, teeth chattering. "Not my fault you took Sam to Hawai'i and not me."

"This is very important," said Castiel. "Did you think I was here with you?"

"Uh," said Dean, flushing with pleasure at the memory. "Yeah. If it wasn't you, then who was it?"

Castiel leaned very close to him. Dean willed his excitement to go down, but he also noticed that the bizarre intensity wasn't there. Just the usual feeling he got when Cas was so close.

"I need you to explain very carefully," said Castiel, " _exactly_ what he was doing."

Dean pulled the blanket around himself. Snow continued to fall into the room in little hushed sounds.

"I don't really want -" he began, then reconsidered his situation. "Fine. But get me out of here."

"I can't take you out of here," said Castiel. "It's too dangerous. Although -"

"Although, what?" Dean demanded. "Still freezing here, Cas."

"Yes, that might work," he said to himself. Before Dean could ask what he was about, the angel had put a hand on his shoulder and pulled him through the ether.

***

When Dean opened his eyes again (he hated flying, in any form), he was standing outside.

There were palm trees lining the streets. The ocean spread out in front of him.

A light rain was falling.

"Welcome to Hawai'i," said Castiel, and Dean could swear that he'd heard a hint of pride in his voice.

And Dean was standing there, naked, wrapped in a comforter.

"Dude," he said. "You could have brought clothes!"

"Certainly," said Castiel. He offered Dean a very loud aloha shirt, a pair of khaki shorts, and sandals.

Dean gave him a look.

"I think I'll wear the blanket," he said stubbornly.

"You won't stand out here," said Castiel. "I promise."

"Cas - "

"What? Do you want to wear a leather jacket and plaid and a black t-shirt?" he said. "Then don't come crying to me when you die of heat stroke instead."

"Okay, okay, jeez," Dean said. He grabbed the clothes and waddled behind the storefronts. Castiel followed.

"Do you mind?" he asked.

"My apologies," said Castiel, and turned back around the corner.

***

Dean dressed quickly, wondering why he was being such a princess about Cas seeing him naked. He didn't want to confess what they had been doing in the motel. If he thought he had a crush before, it was going to bloom into an obsession and horny desperation. He would become the worst-dressed stalker of all time.

"Hell," he said, looking down at himself. He walked around the corner and Cas smiled at him. Butterflies were not given permission to inhabit his stomach but there they squatted anyway.

"I look like a Koolaid packet," said Dean.

"You look very handsome, Dean," said Castiel.

"Shut up," he retorted, but inwardly basked in the praise.

Castiel led him to the Starbucks. It was easy to recognize Sam; he was the tallest person in there by far and his long hair was pushed back by a pair of sunglasses sitting on top of his head.

"Dean!" he cried, and got up to hug him. Dean noticed that Sam was wearing an identical outfit, except his aloha shirt was red while Dean's was blue.

"Nice threads," said Dean.

"Yeah," said Sam. "I told Cas this was the usual look around here."

He grinned wickedly.

"You didn't," said Dean.

"I did," said Sam.

"Pranking me through an angel is a gross abuse of - of - well, everything, Sam!"

"But you cannot deny that you do blend in," Castiel interjected. They looked around and noticed that they were not the only people in the coffee shop dressed like that. In fact, just about everyone was wearing similar clothing.

"Huh," said Dean. "Never thought I'd see a place fully embrace the tourist vibe."

"I don't think it's the tourist thing," said Sam. "I think it's just Hawai'i."

"Okay," said Dean, sitting down. "So - first of all, where are we, and second of all, what do we know?"

"This is Hilo," said Castiel. "I brought you here because you'll be safer in Pele's territory. We need to stick to the coast and to this side of the island for the best results."

"Why's that?" asked Dean.

"Pele's sister is another queen of winter, of sorts," he said. "She inhabits the mountains and brings the snow."

"She and this broad could duke it out," suggested Dean.

"That's a bit much to ask of a goddess," said Castiel. "Pele is already doing the necessary, so it's not an imposition. I spoke to her about it briefly."

"Oh yeah? What did she say?" asked Dean.

"She said  _as long as you haole boys don't interfere_ ," said Cas.

" _Haole_?" asked Dean.

"White people," Sam explained. Dean nodded in understanding.

"She's the goddess of the volcano, right?" Dean asked, and then in response to the look on Sam's face. "What? I read."

Both Sam and Cas stared at him. It was clear they weren't going to let this slide.

"I wanted to go to Hawai'i for a long time, okay?" Dean said. "We already research lore, and I figured since Hawai'i is a part of the US then we might get lucky and get called out here one day. I wanted to be prepared."

"Are you saying that you were using the lore like... a  _travel brochure_?" asked Sam.

"Can it, Sammy," said Dean. "I did it, and maybe it'll give us a fighting chance."

"I'm glad that you've invested more time in research," said Cas. "But now we need to discuss the matter I brought you here to discuss."

Dean looked at him blankly.

"What was the other Castiel doing when you were in that motel room?"

 


	7. Secrets

Dean was pointedly silent.

"Come on, Dean," said Sam. "We need to know so we can figure out what the hell just happened to you! You almost died of hypothermia."

Dean looked steadily down at the table.

"I'll tell Cas,  _in private,_ " he said. "But not you. Butt out."

Sam raised his hands in a gesture of surrender, but there was a merry look in his eyes that Dean didn't entirely like.

Cas put his hand on Dean's shoulder, and just like that, they were standing outside in the rain again.

"Jeez, Cas, you sure know how to show a guy a good time," Dean complained. "What's the matter, can't zap us into a five-star resort?"

Castiel gave him a long-suffering look and suddenly they were in a hotel that had gone past the ridiculous into the stratosphere. Boats plied canals taking guests to their rooms, and Dean could see hammocks hanging between palm trees in the distance.

"Be my guest," said Castiel, irritated, indicating some rattan seats.

Dean sat down, speechless.

"Do you want me to get you a tropical drink, too?" growled Cas, and suddenly there was a giant Mai Tai on the table in front of him.

Dean still didn't know what to say, not least because he was still trying to hitch  _resort with its own private Venice_ to  _affordability_.

"Now  _talk,_ " Castiel commanded. Dean shivered.

And then he talked.

***

"Then I woke up, and the room was freezing, snow was pouring in - and you know the rest."

Dean had gotten through around 5 Mai Tais by this point and to his consternation and joy, they packed a wallop. Sure made talking about it easier. He'd wait for the morning until the guilt and shame poured in on him while he sat in the dark and felt shitty about himself.

Castiel was silent for a very long time.

"So what," Dean slurred. "This - witch, or whatever, mind-whammied me? I think - there's a consent issue there. Or something."

Cas looked uncomfortable. He crossed and uncrossed his legs. Dean tried to give him a clever, suspicious look, but only succeeded in losing his balance from the effort of raising one eyebrow, which he could never do and was secretly jealous of Cas's ability  _because he looked hot when he did that -_

Dean slammed the door on that freight train of thought before it crashed into something.

Hell,  _he_ was about to crash into something.

He put down the Mai Tai.

He realized Cas had been quiet for a very long time.

"Cas?" he started. The angel seemed to come out of a reverie.

"Yes?" asked the angel, as if he had completely forgotten their conversation.

"Witch? Curse? What?" Dean asked.

"Oh," said Castiel. "No, the - uh - the  _granting of earthly desires_ is more like wish fulfillment. Dreams coming true, in a literal way. The Queen of Winter is a decent being, despite the way it looks on the surface."

"So it was a dream?" asked Dean.

"A little more solid than a dream," said Cas. "But yes."

He seemed to find something on the floor extremely interesting.

"And do you - " Cas began. "Do you want those things with me, Dean?"

He didn't look up, but it was obvious that he already knew the answer, given that such a dream would apparently only happen to Dean if he'd desperately wanted it to.

"I don't know what kind of answer you're lookin' for, Cas," said Dean. "But I'm pretty sure you know the answer to that just by the way you won't look me in the eye."

Castiel looked up, and Dean was mesmerized by the way the light blue of his eyes contrasted the deep green of the palm fronds behind him. The tropics did wonders for him, really brought out the chiseled jaw -

-and Dean felt the slow, creeping horror of rejection penetrating through his muddled skull.

"Uh," said Dean intelligently. "It's, uh, okay if you don't feel the same way, Cas. I'm just a guy, you're probably above all that human stuff."

"I think we ought to get back to Sam," said Castiel. "And he won't like it if I bring you back drunk."

He touched Dean's forehead, and Dean wobbled forward a bit, feeling like he'd just been on a merry-go-round. Then the world righted itself and he remembered he was wearing a Hawaiian shirt.

"Aw, man," he said, and then registered the fact that Castiel hadn't really given him an answer. "Cas, I think -"

But Castiel put a hand on his shoulder, and they vanished.

***

"Where  _were_ you guys?" complained Sam. "C'mon, I really want to explore the island."

"Do you really think that's wise?" asked Castiel.

"It's  _Hawai'i_ , Cas," said Sam. "We're hunters. We can handle it."

"Very well," Cas agreed reluctantly. "Stay on the rainy side of the island, Pele doesn't have much patience for us as it is."

"So what's going on with Dean?" asked Sam, as they walked outside.

"The Queen of Winter had him stuck in a dream-loop," said Cas.

"Like a djinn?" asked Sam.

"Sort of, but this was benevolent," said Castiel. "The Queen of Winter is kind. Her gifts are gifts with no strings attached."

"Yeah, except the part where I almost froze to death!" said Dean. 

"That was an unintended consequence," said Castiel. "She brings the winter wherever she goes. It's customary for her to gift future lovers with things they desire."

He gave Dean a strange look.

"So if anything else like that happens," he continued, "it's probably from her."

"Snow's the warning though, right?" asked Dean.

"Yes," said Castiel. "This is a land of fire, and so hopefully it will buy us time."

"But not forever," said Sam.

"Nothing is forever," said Castiel. "Besides, you'd have to stay here for the rest of your lives and wouldn't be able to hunt. And Pele will grow tired of standing in the way. Once we get some research done, we have to take the fight - such as it is - to her."

"To her?" asked Dean. "What, like, in Scotland?"

"Yes," Castiel affirmed.

"This is  _great_ ," Sam grinned.

"Wait a sec," said Dean. "How're we going to get around the island? I left Baby back there in a pile of snow."

They walked out into a parking lot just in front of the storefronts of the town, beyond which was the beach and the wide sea.

Sitting in the parking lot, gleaming black, was a black 1967 Chevy Impala.

" _Baby_?" cried Dean with joy. Then he went stock-still. "This isn't another dream, is it? A glamour?"

Castiel gave a small smile.

"No, Dean," he said. "I brought it here. I thought you would enjoy it."

"Damn right I do," said Dean, and let out a whoop. "Thanks, Cas, you're awesome."

Castiel watched them get into the car with a small, proud smile. 

 


	8. Volcano

They took the road out of Hilo and passed Ken's House of Pancakes when they turned up the highway to Volcano.

"Hey, a diner!" Dean said. "We should stop for burgers later."

"Didn't you get a plate of burgers while you were at the motel?" asked Castiel.

"Sue me, I'm hungry," said Dean.

"When are you not?" asked Sam.

"Later," Castiel interjected. "Right now we need to be as close to the lava as possible. We may have tricked the Queen of Winter for now, but she won't take kindly to it. She'll be here sooner than you think."

"You're the boss," said Dean, adding  _sir_ in his mind. He shuddered with remembered pleasure as he thought of Castiel's eyes glowing blue in the motel.

But that wasn't Cas. He looked in the rearview mirror at the real Castiel - 

who was staring at him with an odd expression.

"Eyes on the road, Dean," Sam reminded him, and Dean turned his attention to the front again.

***

A little while later, they pulled in to a gas station to fill up the car.

"Mountain View," Dean read on the sign, and looked up at the mountain. "Hm. Literal."

"Here," Castiel said, throwing a couple of bottles at them. "Drink these, you need to keep your hydration up."

Dean opened his and drained the bottle of juice.

"Holy crap," Dean said. "That was awesome. What was it?"

"POG," said Castiel. "Passion-orange-guava juice. It's very popular here."

"I can see why," said Dean. "Can I have another one?"

"Are you twelve?" asked Cas.

"C'mon, Cas, just fly back in there," teased Dean.

"Guys," Sam pleaded.

Castiel stalked up to Dean until they were standing nose to nose. Dean stared back at first, but began to blush and stammer beneath that unrelenting gaze. He looked at the ground in submission.

"That's better," said Castiel, and moved away from him.

Dean looked up to see Sam mouthing  _what the fuck was that_  at him. Dean just shook his head.

"Let's get out of here," he said. "No telling how long we've got."

They climbed into the Impala and drove away.

***

Dean flipped the dial on the radio until he found a Hawaiian station. He started to sing along to the first song he heard.

Grinning, he glanced over at his brother, who was wearing an expression between confused and constipated.

Dean told him so, which earned him a punch to the arm.

"Not while I'm driving!" he shouted, and laughed. "Isn't this great? All three of us on vacation! Well, sort of."

"Dean, how do you even know these songs?" asked Sam.

"What do you mean? I'm a cultured dude, Sammy," Dean replied.

"What happened to  _nothing after 1975 is worth listening to,_ " Sam said, imitating him using a terrible voice.

"Dude, I do  _not_ sound like that," Dean said.

"Dude, you  _do,_ " said Sam.

"If you two don't knock it off," Castiel said evenly, "I am going to leave you on the side of the road and drive to Volcano myself."

"Aw, Cas," said Dean. "Don't you think I -  _ **whoa!** "_

The Impala suddenly spun out, and skidded across the road. Fortunately, the highway was empty.

"What the hell?" asked Dean.

"Do you guys think it's getting colder?" asked Sam, rubbing his arms.

"Cas," Dean asked in a steady voice.

"What?" he asked.

"Does it snow in Hawai'i?"

"Yes, on the mountains in the winter," Castiel said.

"But not down here, near the volcano?" Dean said, and pointed outside.

Fat flakes were falling from the grey sky, little flurries brushing the highway in little whirlwinds. The temperature was noticeably cooler and Dean started the heater, which thunked on and seemed to think about things before roaring to life.

"You know what that felt like?" Dean asked. "The spinout, I mean."

"Reminds me of winter in Kansas," said Sam. "Just like - "

"Black ice," they said at the same time.

The three of them looked out at the snowstorm behind them and the sunny skies in front.

"Go," said Castiel. "Just drive more carefully this time."

"Roger that," said Dean, and the Impala headed up the road, away from the living snowstorm that was chasing them.

***

Near Volcano, the steam vents exhaled into the air, giving the impression of a fantasy wasteland.

"The closer we can get to the lava, the better off we'll be," said Castiel. 

"What are we gonna do, Cas?" asked Sam. "We can't run forever."

"I know," said Castiel. "But we can buy some time. We can't face her until we have some kind of game plan."

"Where should I go?" asked Dean. "I'm just driving blind here."

"For now," said Castiel, "I think we head to Kilauea Crater. It's our best chance."

"Our best chance to keep the Queen at bay?" asked Sam.

"Our best chance of an audience with Pele," said Castiel.

***

They paid the fee to get inside the park, and drove the Impala along the barren tracks that surrounded the road to the Crater lookout. The wind was strong when they got out of the car, and they pushed against it to get to the viewpoint.

Several tourists were already there. They looked out over a gigantic crater, steaming in places. It was difficult to understand the sheer size of it just by looking, but they saw people hiking down there, tiny dots beside the vastness of the crater.

"I don't understand," Castiel was saying. 

"What?" called Dean over the wind.

"She's not here," he shouted back.

"What do you mean, she's not here?" Dean demanded.

"I don't know," he said. "This is her home."

"Well, we're not always at home either," Sam pointed out. "Where does a volcano goddess spend her days off?"

***

"This was a  _terrible_ idea."

"I'm sorry! I didn't know if the Impala was going to fit or not."

They were driving very slowly down the Mango Highway, avoiding vines and roots as best they could. The Impala was a little too big for the road and proved cumbersome when meeting cars going the opposite direction. Fortunately, most people were so impressed by her beauty that it seemed like they didn't mind.

"Man, nobody seems to be in a hurry here," said Dean, after the last pickup truck with a few shirtless guys in the back had taken the time to appreciate Baby's lines. "It's like they've got no cares in the world."

Sam grinned and sat back, humming along to the radio. Even Castiel seemed less...strict, for want of a better word. 

"Turn here," said the angel, and Dean took the Impala onto another road, this time along the coast.

"How is  _everything_ so beautiful?" he asked.

When they reached a sign that read Ahalanui, Castiel directed him to park the car. 

They got out, and found themselves in a grove of palm trees. The green grass beneath them was a color of neon so unbelievable it didn't seem natural. As they walked through the grove with the hushed whisper of the palms above them, Dean felt like he was shedding his worries with every step he took.

They reached the edge of a beautiful, crystal-clear pool. Dean held his hand out over it, scarcely believing what he felt.

"Is that - is that heat?" he asked Castiel. The angel nodded.

"Yes," he said. "This pond is heated by the volcano. A pleasant swim, I am told."

"No time like the present," said Dean, and pulled off his shirt. He noticed a beautiful Hawaiian woman with a surfboard watching him and he tipped her a wink.

She turned toward him, and then toward Castiel.

Her dark brown eyes turned momentarily dark, flecked with orange and red.

"Demon?" whispered Sam, backing away. Castiel sighed his patented  _why am I saddled with humans_  sigh, and shook his head.

"Hello, Pele."


	9. Poli'ahu

"What do you  _haole_ boys want now?" Pele asked.

She turned the full force of her gaze on Dean. To everyone's surprise, he immediately looked at the ground.

"Polite," she said. "I like that. What's your name?"

"Dean, ma'am," he said.

She looked at him, and then looked at Castiel. She threw her head back and laughed.

"Pele, we need your help," said Castiel, standing in front of Dean.

"Don't worry, you have it," she said, grinning. "But you'll have to spend some time in my sister's company."

"What?" asked Sam. "If we go up the mountain the winter will catch up with us!"

"Yes," Pele said. " _Haole_ winter, and Poli'ahu is more than up to the task of fighting some old  _haole_ lady off for a while so you can find out the answer. Don't stick around too long, though. She gets bored quick."

"Why?" asked Dean. "I mean, why help us?"

Pele cupped his cheek. He looked up into her molten lava eyes.

"Let's just say I like a good love story," she said, and laughed again. "Now get the hell out of here and let me surf."

She grabbed her surfboard and walked across the grassy palm grove to the parking lot, where she got into a beat-up white pickup truck just like the ones they'd seen people driving when they slowed down to check out the Impala. She threw a  _shaka_ sign out the window and drove away.

"Wow, Dean," said Sam. "Real ladykiller you are."

"She's a  _volcano goddess_ , Sam, show some respect!" said Dean.

"What did she mean by 'love story'?" asked Sam, confused.

" _Okay gotta go,_ " Dean said, and sauntered off towards the parking lot.

Sam looked at Cas, who suddenly found something very interesting in the blue Hawaiian sky.

***

As they drove up the mountain, it got noticeably colder.

"What is it, Cas?" asked Sam. "Is the winter catching up to us?"

"No," Castiel replied. "This is natural. Hawai'i has different climactic zones and the higher you go up on the mountain, the colder it gets, until you hit snow cover. It's why Pele's sister can help - she's the queen of winter here, and of this mountain. It's unlikely we'll see her, she's not as social as Pele."

"Social, right," said Sam.

"You wanna not piss off the volcano goddess on her own island?" Dean snapped. Sam raised his hands in a placating gesture.

"Okay, okay," he said. "Hey, look!"

A bag of chips they'd picked up from the store had expanded with the air pressure.

"Wonder if it's gonna explode," said Dean.

Cas rolled his eyes and said nothing.

***

They pulled into the parking lot of the Mauna Kea Observatory. When they got out of the car, they could tell the air was much thinner up here. 

"I feel weird pressure on my head," said Dean.

"That's the altitude," said Castiel. "Tell me if you start to have trouble breathing."

"I don't think we're far up the mountain enough," said Sam, pointing at the telescopes like alien bases in the snow. "We need to get up there and get into snow cover so we have time to research."

"This has  _got_ to be one of the weirdest cases we've ever had," said Dean. "But we got a tropical vacation out of it. Not that it's very tropical right now."

He rubbed his arms and shivered. 

"Cas, can you fly us up there?" Sam said under his breath. 

"All right," said Castiel. "But it's going to be quite the surprise to the people working on the telescope."

"Well, you're in luck," said Dean, pointing at a sign on the observatory building that read KECK TELESCOPE CLOSED FOR REPAIRS SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE.

***

Moments later, they were standing in a room with threadbare blue carpeting and a few tables. There were blue snowsuits hanging on the wall. 

Castiel moved his hand and all the lights came on. Sam's mouth dropped open.

"Wow,  _cool_ ," he said. "Did you guys know that this is one of the biggest telescopes in the world?"

He went on, talking mostly to himself, looking at all the various instruments.

"Great, Cas, you've broken him," said Dean. "Now he's gonna geek out about all this stuff instead of helping us figure out what the hell to do about this problem."

"It's bought us some time," said Castiel. "We can't let it run out."

"Cas," said Dean, "about what I saw - I - uh."

"Was inaccurate," said Castiel, opening a laptop and sitting down.

"Oh," was all Dean really had to say. Mortification, fear, and a kind of deep grief warred within him, mixed with a healthy dose of self-hatred for even thinking of Castiel that way, of wanting things like that, of  _liking_ things like that, and he only had his own subconscious to blame. Had he known it was a dream, he would never have shared it, and kept it to himself, Queen of Winter or no.

"Dean, please," Castiel said, without looking up. "There's no reason to hate yourself."

"Are you reading my mind?" Dean demanded.

"No, I can't do that," he said. "But I can sense your thoughts, and they are very black."

Castiel paused.

"When I say it was inaccurate," he said, "I didn't mean that it was false, only that the intent was false."

"What does that mean?" asked Dean.

"I wouldn't have had the mindset you imagine," he said.

Then he looked up and pinned Dean with those startlingly blue eyes.

"I would have worshiped you."

"Hey guys," said Sam, with his always-impeccable timing, "did you know that if there's a fire up here you'd feel it before you saw it because of the altitude? Fire's invisible up here!"

He stopped and looked between them.

"Uh, am I interrupting something?" he asked.

"No," Dean said, clearing his throat. "No, we were just about to get down to researching how to save me from the Queen of Winter."

"Damsel in distress is a good look on you," said Sam.

Dean put his finger in Sam's face.

"I will dip you in a vat of Nair," he said.

"Gentlemen," Castiel barked. They looked at him.

"Focus, please."

Grumbling, they sat down at the table, and if they kicked each other beneath it a few times, Castiel never needed to know.

Castiel knew.

 


	10. Telescope

Sam rubbed his eyes, losing focus on the computer screen.

"Man, I'm beat," he said. "I can't find  _anything_  that's going to work."

"There's a space in the other room for the workers to sleep when they're off-shift," said Castiel. "Why don't you get some sleep? Dean and I will keep looking."

Sam yawned and nodded. 

"Yeah, I think that's best," he said. "I'll be better in the morning."

He stood, clapped Dean on the shoulder, and walked out of the room.

***

Dean slid over to the laptop and started searching. 

There were unspoken words hanging there in the air between them. He wasn't sure this was the time or the place.

"Have you looked under things that repel the Fae?" Castiel asked, as if he hadn't dropped a bombshell on Dean earlier. "We call her a goddess but all creatures in Scotland come from Faerie. Maybe iron would work."

Dean pretended that he wasn't confused by Castiel's all-business, all the time approach to the situation. He began to doubt that Castiel had ever said anything, and maybe he'd read the entire thing the wrong way.

Right. Well, if so, he could handle rejection. It wasn't like  _every_ woman automatically fell into his bed, as much as he might have told Sammy otherwise. 

If Cas could be all business, so could Dean.

"Iron would only keep her away, if that was the case," said Dean, covering his confusion with bravado as usual. "Keeping her away is one thing. Making sure that she loses interest and leaves me alone forever, that's something else entirely."

Castiel seemed to muse about this for a long time. Dean watched, hypnotized, as Cas's thick fingers brushed against his full lips, barely pressed together. When he opened them to exhale, Dean caught a brief glimpse of teeth and tongue.

He suddenly realized he was impossibly hard. He tried to surreptitiously press against his clothed cock to relieve the pressure and found, as always, that it only made it worse. He wondered why he kept doing it as if it would change things.

"What about a spell?" Castiel asked.

"Screw that," said Dean, desperately trying to think of something that would distract him from Cas's soft, chapped pink lips. "I'm not getting any witches involved in this one. We're already up to our eyeballs in random goddesses."

"Be polite," warned Castiel. "They can hear you."

"Who can't, these days?" Dean asked.

Eventually, he was able to tear his mind away from the gutter and deep dive into research. Scotland's folklore was fascinating, but it was also extremely detailed and very, very long. 

"Man, you couldn't learn all of this in an entire lifetime," said Dean.

"Several lifetimes," Castiel corrected him. 

"You'd know," said Dean, and awareness washed over him of the unknowableness of Castiel, this ancient being, who seemed perfectly happy to sit there and watch him do research on a laptop for hours, as if he hadn't had a part in designing the glorious firmament just above their heads.

Castiel hummed, a small smile playing about his features.

"Wait," said Dean. "I think I found something."

And a good thing, too. It was nearly dawn, and Pele had told them that Poli'ahu's patience ran out faster than her own.

Castiel stood, straightening out his trenchcoat, his hand sliding down his tie. Dean watched all this, and realized that his arousal had not left him, but was only sleeping. Now it picked up again like a live wire.

The angel circled the table and stood behind him. Dean tried to hide his disappointment but it wasn't easy. 

Castiel leaned down as if to read the screen.

Instead, his lips brushed the back of Dean's neck, his breath ghosting across his skin. 

Dean's eyelashes fluttered, and his eyes closed, as he sank willingly into the storm.

" _Dean Winchester,_ " Castiel breathed onto the back of his neck, lips touching Dean's skin and leaving it as he spoke, like a series of small kisses. " _You have always been my greatest and my sweetest blasphemy._ "

The sound of footsteps echoed in the hall outside. 

Castiel straightened up just as Sam walked into the room.

"Hey guys," he said, yawning. "You find anything?"

"Yes," said Castiel, easy as anything. "Dean says he found something, we were just discussing it."

Dean couldn't speak for a moment. Every hair on his body seemed to be standing on end. He was so painfully hard beneath the table it was going to take everything he had to distract himself.

"Uh," he said, or squeaked. Then he coughed. Sam raised an eyebrow at him.

"Says here that she'll only give up the focus of her affections if she is certain his heart belongs to another," said Dean. 

"Oh? And how would you go about proving that?" asked Sam.

"Apparently it has to be done somewhere in her 'dominion', whatever that means," said Dean.

"What, like sex?" asked Sam.

"Some of the older religions do use sex magic, yes," said Castiel. "But that would only work if the bond was strong between the two people. No sex without love."

"Well, I'm sure some woman you've slept with still loves you," said Sam, grinning. "And she probably wouldn't say no to a free trip to Scotland."

"The Scottish Highlands in particular," said Castiel. His hand tightened on the back of Dean's chair. "And it wouldn't work with just any woman. Dean would have to be in love with her, too."

Sam looked concerned.

"I don't know what we're going to do," he said. "I don't think Dean loves anybody."

"Hey!" said Dean, whose brain finally decided to join the party at hand. He found that he was overheating, sweat beading on his forehead. He wiped it off.

"C'mon, you know what I mean," said Sam. "Mr. Unattached Drifter Christmas."

Castiel's expression went past stormy right down to Category 6 Hurricane. He looked like he was about to smite someone. He also looked uncomfortable, and loosened his tie.

"Cas, you ok?" asked Sam. Castiel snapped off a nod at him.

"We're all worried," said Dean. "Either way, it looks like we're going to have to face her on her playing field. Guess that means we'll have to thank these ladies for their hospitality and get out."


	11. Castle

They walked outside in the darkness. It looked like a moonscape.

"Oh  _wow,_ " said Sam, craning his head up to look at the sky.

Dean looked up, and saw the stars and Milky Way spread out across the night sky. He had seen things like this in paintings, but never in real life, never just a hair's breadth away. 

He glanced at Cas, who was looking at him as if he were the equivalent of the universe.

It took his breath away.

In the distance, they saw the shape of a woman in a white cloak. She nodded to them.

"Time to go," said Castiel, and he put his hands on their shoulders.

The next moment, there was nothing on the mountain but the wind kicking up the snow.

***

Dean blinked.

**_Green._ **

He'd never seen such intense green in all his life.

They were standing on the side of a steep mountain. The green grass and trees sloped down to a lake at the bottom of the valley. There was an island in the lake, with a building on it -

"Is that a  _castle?!_ " Sam shouted with the exuberance of Americans everywhere.

"Yes," said Castiel. "Kilchurn Castle, the ancient seat of the Campbells. Ancestors of yours, I believe."

"We're in Scotland!" Sam crowed. "Do you have  _any idea_ how much history is here? Let's go, I want to check it out."

Castiel smiled.

"You go on ahead," he said. "Dean and I have unfinished business to attend to."

Sam raised an eyebrow and gave them a look Dean wasn't sure he liked. 

"Something wrong, Sasquatch?" asked Dean. Sam looked as if he were  _this close_  to sticking his tongue out, but in the war between nerdery and curiosity about his brother, nerdery won out every time.

"No," he said. "I'll be down there when you guys are done, uh, finishing."

He snorted, and before Dean could think of a retort, he was gone down the trail.

"Look at him," said Dean. "Happier than a pig in shit because he gets to combine exercise with being a huge nerd. Add a salad and it's heaven."

He said the words with a fondness in his voice he would definitely deny in front of Sam. 

But with Cas, well, everything was easier.

***

"Okay, you got me alone," said Dean. "You gonna jump my bones or what?"

Castiel rolled his eyes.

"And I  _had_ to have him," he muttered, possibly to an absent God.

"Excuse me?" Dean demanded. "I'm a damn good lay, I will have you know. Ah, what do you know about it, angels are junkless -"

Castiel was in his space a lot faster than he'd expected. Blue eyes bore down on him until Dean flicked his gaze to the ground.

"You certainly didn't think I was 'junkless' during your dreamtime," said Castiel.

"Can we do without the airquotes?" asked Dean.

"No."

Castiel sighed.

"Why are you so  _infuriating,_ " he said.

"I'm not.  _You_ just have a bad temper," said Dean.

"Is that so? Then don't test it!" Castiel snapped.

Dean put his hands up in surrender.

"Okay, okay," he said. "Sorry."

Castiel looked like he was gathering his strength.

"In order to fix this," he said, "there is a ritual involved. Yes, there is sex."

" _Awesome,_ " said Dean. 

"Dean, this isn't just some casual fling," said Castiel. "It's true love or nothing. So who shall I fetch? Lisa?"

"Fetch?" Dean asked, incredulous. "Who shall you  _fetch?_  Man, Cas, for an angel that was once the greatest strategist in heaven, you sure are dumb."

Castiel narrowed his eyes.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Cas, are you in love with me?" Dean asked, getting things out in the open. The sun was shining, the grass was an unearthly green, and he figured a love confession in the Highlands of Scotland on a mountain was about the best thing a poor drifter like him was ever going to get.

Castiel looked  _exactly_ like he had that night Dean brought him to the whorehouse.

His eyes were huge and round. He just stared for a moment.

"I - "

The sky suddenly darkened. The wind rushed up the mountain so quickly and the storm had come upon them so fast that they had no time.

"Run for cover!" shouted Dean, who threw himself down the mountain path. Castiel ran after him and clapped a hand on his shoulder.

A moment later, they were inside the walls of the old, run-down castle.

"What the hell was that?" Dean demanded. 

"The Queen of Winter," said Castiel. "This is her dominion."

"Are we in that castle?" asked Dean.

"Yes, it was the nearest shelter I could see," said Castiel.

Dean looked around in wonder.

"Wow," he said. "I've never been in a castle before."

Footsteps echoed through the empty stone halls, and Sam walked through the doorway. When he caught sight of them, he frowned.

"Hey," he said. "It's not fair if you teleport! Jeez, Dean, you could use some exercise too, you're getting a paunch."

"I didn't -" Dean began, indignant, when Cas stepped in front of him.

"The Queen of Winter is here," said Castiel. "And she will stop at nothing until we can fix this."

"Great," said Sam. "Then let's fix it. Figure out who your true love is yet, Dean?"

Dean glared daggers at his brother.

"We'll need to stay here for a while until I can get the lay of the land," said Castiel. "Maybe I'll be able to find a hotel or somewhere more comfortable. Until then, stay here.  _Do not_ leave the castle."

And he blinked out of existence.

"Typical," said Dean.

"Dean," said Sam. "We need to talk about this whole  _true love_ thing. I mean, where are you going to find someone like that at short notice?"

"I know, I -" Dean began, and then noticed something in Sam's expression.

It was the same look he got when he thought he'd won a prank war but Dean hadn't found his  _piece de resistance_ yet.

"Are you fucking with me?" Dean demanded.

"I dunno. Are you fucking with Cas?" asked Sam. He laughed as if he thought this was the most hilarious thing he'd ever said.

"Shut up," said Dean, and felt his traitor cheeks turning red.

Sam's eyes got huge.

" _Oh my God Cas is your true love,_ " said Sam.

"It's not - it doesn't change anything," Dean said, "I'm still the same brother you've always - "

Dean trailed off. Sam looked as if he were about to explode with whatever tricks he had planned.

"You knew, didn't you," he stated. Sam broke out in a huge grin.

Dean's mouth dropped open.

"Were you actually  _trying_ to cockblock me?!" he demanded. Sam ran out of punching distance.

"I didn't want to walk in on anything  _worse_!" he said, laughing. 

"I am going to kick your ass," he said.

"Maybe," said Sam. "But I can outrun you."

"Are you twelve?" Dean asked, chasing after Sam and proving that he, too, was apparently twelve years old.

Castiel reappeared during the commotion.

"Can I not leave you two alone for  _two minutes?_ " he asked. 

They both stopped and turned to him, looking guilty.

"I found a hotel," Castiel explained. "It has a pub. The weather will only get colder, and the sun will go behind the mountains soon. The night is set to be wild and windy. I thought you might prefer it."

"A beer-seeking angel," crowed Dean. "Score."

"Dean that's really inappropriate - " Sam began. 

Castiel grumbled to himself, set his hands on their shoulders, and they were gone.

 

 


	12. Universe

The hotel Cas had found was more like a B&B with a pub inside it. Dean had downed a few beers enthusiastically, but Sam finally dragged him away from the bar where he was trying to decipher the accent of a man who had been speaking with him.

"Dean, we have things to do," said Sam in a low voice. Dean nodded and set down his beer.

"Great talking to you," he said, and followed Cas and Sam up the stairs to their rooms.

"Look, guys," said Sam. "I'm going to do some more research into things so we make sure the spell is accurate. Why don't you go talk things over."

Dean waited for the tell-tale twinkle in Sam's eyes that meant he was messing around, but this time there was only honesty.

"Thanks," he said to Sam. "I mean it."

"Anytime," Sam replied, and as he walked away. "Keep it down in there."

Dean gave him the finger as he walked away. "Wear headphones."

He walked into his room and saw Castiel sitting on a chair, elbows on his knees, hands folded. The angel looked up as he turned around and closed the door.

"So, now that we don't have annoying brothers or supernatural entities interrupting us," said Dean, surprised at his own boldness, "I think it's time we had a talk."

***

"Dean, I -"

"You know what, Cas? No. I'm gonna talk, because I never do, and honestly I've been a real shit to you over the years," said Dean, pacing back and forth the way he did when he was nervous. "I've had a thing for you for - for - well,  _years,_ now that I think about it. I was just too stupid to understand."

"Don't say that," said Castiel, standing up. "You're not stupid, Dean. You're incredibly clever and quick on your feet. You're loyal to a fault and will do anything to protect the people you love."

He approached Dean, who held his gaze, this time. He laid the palm of his hand against his cheek.

"It's why I fell in love with you, Dean Winchester," he said, looking for all the world like it had taken him just as much courage to admit it himself. "And I always will, whether you return the sentiment or not."

"Oh hell, we are such  _idiots,_ " said Dean, leaned in, and kissed him.

It was nothing like the dream, and also like everything.

Dean was suddenly aware of sliding, irrevocably, endlessly, as if this had been hidden from him and now he was spinning out of control, like black ice.

He pulled back from those soft full lips to whisper  _I love you too, Castiel,_ against them.

***

Castiel stood back from him, staring, as if he couldn't believe what he'd just heard. 

Dean held him by the elbows so he wouldn't spook or get away, pinning him firmly with his gaze to emphasize just how much he meant it.

"And if we are supposed to have sex to work this spell tomorrow," said Dean, "which I assume will be outside somewhere, in the cold, I'd like to do it here first."

Castiel swallowed visibly.

"Dean?" he asked, and there was a whole world in that question.

"I want our first time to be somewhere comfortable," Dean clarified. "Somewhere we choose. Free will, and all that."

"And you - you'd like me to - ?" asked Castiel uncertainly.

"Are you not listening to me?" asked Dean, exasperated. " _Yes,_ Castiel, angel of the Lord, I want you, I love you, I give you permission. Now please let's do something. We've waited long enough."

Something about this phrase seemed to touch off something in Castiel, because he was suddenly kissing him  _everywhere_ , his lips, his cheeks, his neck, gripping him so tightly he was having trouble breathing.

"Cas," he coughed. "A little air?"

"My apologies," said Castiel, backed off, and with a swift motion their clothes had vanished.

"Uh, Cas, some people like the anticipation," complained Dean.

"Get on the bed."

Dean, cowed, did as he was told.

"Lie on your back."

Castiel approached the side of the bed and just stood there, staring. This went on for an uncomfortably long time, and Dean became a little embarrassed, feeling exposed and vulnerable.

"Hey, uh," he said. "You gonna do anything or just stare at me all night?"

"Dean Winchester," breathed Castiel. "You are made of the elements of heaven and earth."

Castiel knelt down on the bed and leaned over, kissing his chest. His hand went into Dean's hair.

"Your hair is made of gold filament, and your eyes the bounty of the Earth," whispered Castiel. His hand slipped down to splay across Dean's chest. "Your skin covered with the beauty of the constellations, did you know I drew them there? Evidence of my own design."

He sighed, stroking down Dean's side, laying his head against his chest and watching the motion of his hand.

"Pygmalion fell in love with his creation," he breathed. "And so I fell in love with you, with this body I recreated with my own hands, with my own design, my signature, my seal upon your shoulder."

Dean felt tears burning his eyes, sliding down the side of his head into his hair. This, this was huge, this was a universe, and he'd deflected so much with humor and with his foolish human requests. Here was a demigod worshipping him, a creature born at the time of creation who had seen the stars born in the sky.

Perhaps he had hung them there.

"I watched the first fish climb onto land," Castiel was saying, as he moved downward. "I watched cities rise, I watched them destroyed, I even had a hand in the destruction. I have seen everything, from your beginnings in Africa, through the nomadic peoples spreading throughout the world, to the Crusades, to the Renaissance, to now. And all of those hundreds of billions of people, of creatures, of things - out of all of them, nothing compares to the way you smile at me."

Dean couldn't do anything but lay there, his heart and mind a tumult of thoughts and images, as if Castiel had sent his memories, vast and ancient, into his mind. He saw the enormity of the being that was  _Castiel_ , his role as guardian throughout all of space and time, and a great unknown, out there spinning among the stars. And here he was, laying soft kisses across his skin, and telling Dean that of all creation  _he_ was the ultimate prize.

"I waited so long for you," sighed Castiel, lifting his cock, and swallowing him down to the root.

Dean arched and bucked up hard. He came with a shout, and with stars in his eyes, the kind that wheel slowly around planets.

_That's not right,_ he thought deliriously,  _planets rotate around the stars._

But Castiel looked at him, at Dean, at humanity and Earth, and Dean realized this bed was a geocentric universe, where he was worshipped by a star.

Dean came down softly from the night sky, the immense galaxies he had seen in the firmament above Hawai'i.

Dean looked at Castiel as if he had never seen him before - or at least, never recognized exactly what he was looking at. 

If Dean was worthy of worship, how much moreso was Castiel?

"Do you need me to - " Dean began, realizing this incident had been very one-sided.

"It's all right," Castiel said, indicating that he had already finished himself.

"When?" Dean asked.

"When you did," said Castiel, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

They looked at each other for a moment, then Castiel crawled up to him and pillowed Dean's head on his shoulder.

He kissed him on the top of his head, and spoke into his hair.

"Thank you," said Castiel, and tightened his hold.

Dean had no idea how he would ever see anything the same way again.

 


	13. Magic

The morning sun streamed into the bedroom, making the white sheets of the bed glow in the light.

Dean slept with one leg hiked up outside of the covers, while Castiel slept burrowed into his back. Dean opened his eyes in the sunlight and tried to stand up. Castiel grumbled something and burrowed further, holding Dean in a vice grip.

"C'mon, Cas, some of us gotta pee," said Dean. 

Castiel's head popped up. He opened one blue eye, his hair a complete mess, and his mouth a deep frown. He said something in Enochian that sounded an awful lot like a swearword and released Dean from the cage of his arm. Then he rolled over with a huff and snuggled back down into the bed again.

Dean looked down at him with a fond expression, and then made his way to the bathroom.

***

Later, after they were dressed, they listened politely to the stories the hostess told them over breakfast. It was heavy Scottish fare, eggs, tomato, and black pudding. Dean was over the moon with delight.

"We'd better get a move on," said Sam. "Once the Queen of Winter figures out where we are, it's game over."

Castiel nodded.

"Let's not let Pele's kindness go to waste," he said. Sam cleared his throat and was decidedly Not Looking at Dean.

"All right," he said. "So I'll perform the spell from a distance, maybe inside the castle? Cas, will that offer me enough protection from her?"

"It should, as long as you stay in the part that still has walls and a roof," said Castiel.

"So then, you'll find a place to, uh," Sam said, still Not Looking at Dean.

"I've already found one," said Castiel. Dean quirked an eyebrow at him.  _When?_ he mouthed, but Castiel wasn't looking at him either.

"Great," said Sam. "So, uh, that will happen, and I'll be chanting the incantation. Is there anything else I need to know? Timing, something like that?"

"No," said Castiel. "You do your part, we'll do ours. That will be enough."

"Right," said Sam. "Then let's get going."

Castiel put his hand on Sam's shoulder, and they vanished, along with all the equipment Sam was bringing with him. 

Then Castiel reappeared in front of Dean.

"Are you ready?" he asked. Dean grinned, full of a bravado he did not feel. Not after last night.

"As I'll ever be," Dean lied, and they vanished.

***

Castiel's chosen place was a forest clearing, where the sun was shining directly through the trees. The mountains surrounded it, hemming it in, and protecting it from prying eyes.

Dean whistled.

"This place is beautiful," said Dean.

"There's a place like it in Heaven," said Castiel. "From Before. Long before they went corporate, shall we say."

Castiel turned to him, and somehow still looked nervous.

"Dean Winchester, will you do me the honor?" he asked.

"Yes," said Dean. Castiel lifted a hand to get rid of their clothes, but Dean stopped him.

"Nuh uh," he said. "Not that way. If we're doing this, we're doing it  _right._ The messy, complicated,  _human_ way."

And he kissed Castiel with everything he had, trying to pour all he felt into the kiss. In a moment, Castiel was kissing back. 

Dean pushed the trenchcoat from Castiel's shoulders, and his suit jacket afterwards.

"God, I've dreamed about doing this," said Dean, unbuttoning Castiel's shirt slowly, pulling out the tails. Once he had the angel's shirt open, he ran his palms over all that tanned skin. Then he pushed the shirt off too.

"Hell, Cas," said Dean, who hadn't had enough time to appreciate Castiel the night before, "you must work out a lot."

Everything about Castiel was tensile steel, muscle and coiled strength. He was built and broad-shouldered underneath all that clothing, and Dean would be lying if he said it didn't make him weak in the knees. 

And there, again, was that powerful desire to kneel in front of him, that old sense of awe he now knew had a terrifyingly real origin.

Cas, for his part, basked in the attention, before he came forward to kiss Dean again, and made quick work of his flannel, dropping it to the ground. He slowly lifted Dean's tshirt, hungrily staring at the skin he was exposing inch by inch. Finally, that was gone too, and they stood together panting in the clearing, in the snow, staring at each other.

Then finally, finally, Dean went to his knees, and unzipped Castiel's pants, pulling them down with his underwear. Somehow, Castiel stepped out of them gracefully, and took his socks off himself. He stood proudly in the snow barefoot as Dean stared up at him in dazed awe.

The wind began to pick up, chilling Dean to the bone. 

And he leaned forward, taking Castiel in his mouth gently, as far as he could go. 

Castiel moaned and threw his head back, his hand moving to Dean's hair. He moved in and out of his mouth slowly, reveling in the sensation. 

Then he backed away, knelt down, and pushed Dean into the snow. Dean's jeans vanished.

Castiel looked like a tsunami waiting to crash into shore.

Suddenly, they were frantic with each other, mouths everywhere, Dean's hands all over Castiel's body. There was something like a struggle as to who would be taking charge, when Castiel grabbed Dean and pushed him down.

"No," he said. "Not this time. This time, I will make my claim on you."

And great black wings spread out over his back. Dean was overwhelmed, and willing to do anything Castiel asked.

The angel smoothed a hand over his back. 

"I need you to obey my every word," said Castiel. "Can you do that, Dean?"

"Yes," Dean whispered. He felt himself growing impossibly hard again, the way he had when he'd had his dreams. 

"Good," Castiel soothed. He opened his hand, and a little bottle materialized there. He coated his fingers in lube, and began to press a finger inside him, murmuring encouragement at how well Dean's body accepted him.

"I will put my seal upon your soul, as I have on your shoulder," said Castiel. "You will belong to me, Dean. Would you like that?"

In a smaller, more humiliated tone, Dean whispered  _yes_ in response.

Castiel's low, throaty laugh made Dean's cock twitch, and as a second finger breached him he let out a moan.

It was snowing, Dean realized, and coming down fast, even in this clearing. The wind was in the treetops, sounding like an angry wail.

Castiel pushed another finger inside him. Dean moaned and rocked back against him. 

"Are you ready, beloved?" whispered Castiel, his other hand wrapping around Dean's cock.

" _Fuck! yes,_ " Dean babbled, and his breath caught as he felt Castiel's cock nudging against his hole.

Castiel moved forward, and Dean panted, crying out, as his cock slid home.

" _Oh my God,_ " Dean said, taking great gulps of air.

"It will take a moment for you to adjust to me," said Castiel. "We are differently equipped."

"You don't say," said Dean, who felt stretched to his limit. 

"You're doing so well," said Castiel, and then he began to move. 

Dean's cries and wails echoed through the forest. He was delirious with everything Castiel was doing to him, the whole world boiled down to this pinpoint, where he lived for Castiel inside him and nothing more. The angel fucked into him with a slow, steady rhythm, bracing himself on the ground with one hand, gripping Dean's ass with the other.

And Dean suddenly noticed that the snow had melted, and the clearing was warmer, and small pink flowers had bloomed next to Castiel's hand.

The shadows of his great wings loomed over them, making patterns in the snow that was quickly giving way to green grass. Dean made a decision then, and pushed Castiel off him.

"Not like that," said Dean, rolling onto his back, now that the grass was warm and soft beneath him. "This way, Cas. I want to see your face."

And Dean was right to do it, as he wrapped his arms around Castiel and sank his fingers into those feathers for the first time, and Cas cried out, losing control and fucking into him harder, jackhammering into his pliant body. 

" _Fuck, yeah, Cas, just like that,_ " whispered Dean. "Love your cock, love you -"

Castiel wailed at that, grabbed Dean by the hips, and made him take everything the angel had to give, powerful wingbeats accompanying every thrust. Dean's hands never left Castiel's wings, and he saw the electric blue spark in his angel's eyes.

"I am yours, Castiel," said Dean clearly. "I love you."

Castiel gasped and stilled.

And he roared his completion, shoving Dean down hard onto his cock, and Dean felt him spill, and he cried out and came all over himself.

There, in the sky, for a moment, was that strange blue ring Dean had seen in his dreams, flashing bright for a moment before fading out.

Castiel pressed his forehead to Dean's, panting harshly. Dean felt completely lost in a haze of beauty and love.

When they came to their senses, they sat up.

The entire clearing was filled with heather, and the sky was summer-blue. The weather was mild and pleasant.

Far off, somewhere up in the mountains, was a furious groan of wind. 

Then, it died away, and somehow - it was summer.


	14. Again

"Is that it? Is it done?"

Castiel sat up, and Dean took the opportunity to look at him, naked, his body taut like a bow. The black feathers of his wings shone brightly in the sun.

He shaded his eyes and looked up, then around himself in the clearing.

"No."

"What do you mean, no?" asked Dean. 

"I mean this is the only place where it's summer."

Castiel pointed to the sky, and Dean saw that the sunlight was pouring through a circle of blue above the clearing. Angry black clouds surrounded it. Beyond the clearing itself, he could see the trees bending wildly in the wind, and swirling snow.

"Sammy's out there, Cas, we gotta -"

"Well, well," said a woman's voice. "Thanks for the show, but you didn't quite get it right."

Standing at the edge of the clearing, with the snow and storm following her somehow, was a stocky older woman with cherry-red cheeks, as if she'd just come in from the cold.

"Beira," said Castiel, standing in front of Dean protectively. 

But Dean peered around him in startled surprise.

" _You?"_  demanded Dean. "You, from the - the log cabin convenience store?"

She smiled and shrugged.

"Wanted to get a good look at my future husband," she tittered. Dean stood up and pointed at her.

"I am  _not_ your future husband," he said in what he hoped was a threatening tone, belatedly realized he wasn't wearing any pants, and retreated behind Castiel to look for his jeans.

"You cannot have this one, Beira," Castiel was saying.  _Damn,_ Dean thought.  _Even naked, he could command armies._  Castiel stood proud and unashamed, reminding Dean of Greek marble statues he had seen once upon a time.

"Oh?" she asked, advancing on him. "And why is that?"

"Because we have bonded," Castiel said, a little smug.

"You've done  _nothing,_ " she spat. "And he's still mine. Come on, beautiful."

Dean felt a strange tug in his stomach, as if he were being compelled. He tried to ignore it, buttoning up his jeans and struggling into his tshirt.

"Dean, don't listen to her," said Castiel, an edge of panic in his voice.

"You  _really think_  you can take him away from me, especially casting spells in that traitor language?" she demanded. "Too late. He's mine."

Dean held strong.

"I'm my own!" he shouted. "And I choose who I belong to."

His hand gripped Castiel on the arm.

"Don't let her take me," he whispered. "Please, Cas."

Castiel was still for a moment and then went nuclear.

He clapped his hands over Dean's eyes and just before the lights went out, he saw what looked like a blue shockwave fan out from around them, levelling anything and everything in its path.

Two minutes later, Cas removed his hand. Beira was gone.

"That will hold her off," he said. "But we must try again, and hurry. There isn't much time."

"Again?" asked Dean, his throat nearly closed with hope and terror.

"Again," Castiel confirmed.

***

This time, it was less frantic, and Castiel took his time. He kissed Dean everywhere, even places Dean found a little odd.

But getting his own hands on Castiel, well, that was entirely worth it. He ran his fingertips over the angel's body, making him hiss and his cock harden. Castiel's wings were already shaking, his desire obviously building. For Dean, this was like something so far beyond sex he didn't have a name for it, celestial and earthly, meeting in the middle, like the fingertips of God and Adam touching, like the sky kissed the earth, like the sea made love to the shoreline. He was so fine-tuned to Castiel that he moaned when the angel did, and when Castiel folded a hand around his hard cock, the angel cried out, too.

Eventually, Castiel positioned himself above Dean, and slowly slid into him. They both gasped together, a sheen of sweat covering Castiel's body, his wings vibrating in fine tremors that caused the longest feathers to sway. They stared into each other's eyes, just as they so often had in the past, in awe and wonder at their connection, and the way their bodies were connected, and that they had ever made it here at all.

And then Cas started speaking in Gaelic, and Dean was lost.

He'd never felt anything like it, not even the last time they'd done this less than half an hour ago. Not during his dreams-are-real experience with a dominant Castiel. Not in the hotel.

This was like someone had lit him on fire from the inside, and all he could do was desperately fuck himself down onto Castiel's cock as if it was his only purpose.

The clearing filled with strange light, white with a tinge of blue.

" _Please, Cas, I'll do anything,_ " moaned Dean. Castiel, firm and strong, kept thrusting into him and dragging his cock out, only to thrust back in again. Dean was lost in blue eyes and the need, old and familiar, to worship this ancient creature made of love and light.

Castiel, for his part, was confident and sure, lifting Dean and dropping him again and again, impaling him, dominant and somewhat frightening in both his need and his complete assurance that Dean belonged to him, that Dean's pleasure was rightly his, and that he would take what he needed and ensure Dean would be satisfied.

Dean was wild and unhinged, babbling nonsense, reaching for Castiel and clutching at him. He already felt like he had reached orgasm, but he hadn't, and had become a begging, filthy mess.

Whatever incantation Cas had been chanting in Gaelic must have finished, because after he spoke the last word, Dean saw that strange ring of blue in the sky. This time, it didn't flash out like before, but sat there in the air for a while, like the ring of a planet around them.

"Come for me, beloved," whispered Castiel, and as if that had been all Dean had been waiting for, his body convulsed and he came, and came, and came, all over Castiel and himself and the ground, and it seemed like it would never stop. Dean's voice was hoarse with screaming and he couldn't take his eyes off of Castiel's, as he stared down at Dean with those bright blue eyes filled with absolute confidence and love, and Dean understood now how he had once commanded armies.

Castiel watched all of this, and then with one furious thrust, sobbed out his own orgasm as his wings flared out in dominance. 

" _Mine,_ " Castiel growled in Dean's ear, and the blue ring brightened.

" _Yours,_ " whispered Dean, and the blue ring tightened around them, passing through them. Dean let out a shout, and his cock twitched valiantly as a wave of sheer pleasure washes through him.

"We're bonded," snarled Castiel, over his shoulder. In the background behind him, Dean could see Beira at the treeline, looking furious and disappointed.

Castiel raised his hand, and a blue ring of light around his finger seemed to be attached by a thin wisp of smoke to a matching blue ring of light around Dean's.

"Do you really want to come between me and my mate?" Castiel demanded. "Is that the kind of thing you want to tangle with today?"

Muttering, Beira started to vanish.

"Thanks for the advice about Gaelic, by the way," said Castiel. "I couldn't have done it without you."

Beira looked up in realization, then brightened, and flashed out of existence.

The angry clouds above their heads cleared. The snow slowed, and stopped falling. The trees returned to their normal state.

The sun shone down on the clearing filled with flowers, on Dean and Castiel, and on the countryside all around.

"Now it's done," said Castiel.

 


	15. The Beach

Of course, Dean's first thought after all of this was the usual for his one-track mind.

No, not that.

" _Sam,_ " he said urgently, crawling out from under Castiel. "We gotta go find him! What if he's frozen to the floor of the castle or something? C'mon Cas will you help me find my clothes?"

Castiel chuckled, handing him his things, standing there naked and unashamed. Once Dean was finished dressing, he looked the angel up and down.

"Okay I know it's badass and all, but I  _really_ think Sam won't appreciate your body like I do," said Dean, indicating Cas's nakedness.

He looked down at himself as if he had quite forgotten about it.

"Oh," he said, in a tone of faint surprise. "My apologies."

And with the sound of wind, suddenly he was the same old familiar trenchcoated angel with piercing blue eyes. The sight of him dressed this way made Dean's heart do strange things in his chest.

But that was for later consideration at Dean's leisure. There were other, more pressing things on his mind.

***

Sam stood back from the smoking dish, looking up to the sky.

"Hope that worked," he said. "Must have, if the sky is blue again."

"I hope you don't mind my adding a few things, Samuel," said a voice that made him jump. He whirled around.

" _Rowena?_ " Sam exclaimed. The little redheaded witch was perched with her legs crossed on a broken-down pillar. "What are you doing here?"

She gave him a scathing look.

"I realise this may be beyond your scope," she said. "But I live here."

She thought about this for a moment.

"Well, not  _now,_ " she amended. "But I did. And I sensed the old magic, had to see what was happening, especially once your angel started throwing Gaelic around like he meant it."

Sam stared at her.

"You could have  _helped,_ " he said.

"And I  _did_ ," said Rowena. "You boys, always getting the ingredients wrong. Anyway, I had an old score to settle with that hag. Thanks for being the catalysts. You're good at that, at least."

Suddenly, Castiel and Dean appeared in front of them.

"Dean!" 

"Sam!"

The two brothers hugged each other tightly.

"Isn't that sweet?" Rowena addressed Castiel. "It's like they're the only people it the world. Rather romantic, don't you think?"

"They're  _brothers,_ " growled Castiel. Rowena shrugged and made a humming noise.

Sam pushed Dean away, wrinkling his nose.

"Dude, you  _reek,_ " he said.

"You would too, Sammy," said Dean, waggling his eyebrows.

"Ah,  _gross!_ " Sam said. Dean noticed Rowena.

"What's she doing here?" he demanded.

"Nice of you to finally notice, dear," said Rowena. "I saw you boys were stumbling towards disaster and thought I'd take this chance to visit the old country, make sure you didn't set anything on fire. Besides, I missed having a good cup of tea."

"Uh. Thank you?" hazarded Dean. Rowena smiled.

"You see, Samuel?" she asked. "He's learned manners! Unlike yourself. It seems one can teach an old dog new tricks after all."

"What do you want, Rowena?" Castiel said. Rowena gave him an innocent look.

"Why, nothing," she said. "Your humiliating Beira was all the thanks I need."

"I'm glad you're all right, Sam," said Castiel. "But we should be going."

"Aw, and such a short stay, too," said Rowena. "There must be all kinds of beasties that need to be murdered here, and ghosts, wouldn't you think?"

"The hunters here will have to look to that," said Castiel. "I need to bring these two home."

Rowena rolled her eyes and made a sound of disgust.

"Americans," she said. "Centre of the universe in their own minds, even the Apocalypse was started there. The world is wide, you know."

And with that, she blinked out of existence.

***

"So, what's the plan?" asked Sam, as he caught up to Castiel and Dean walking up the path to the place where they had arrived.

"I will bring you back to America," said Castiel. "Besides, we left the car there."

" _Baby_ ," said Dean, with feeling. "I can't believe I forgot about you."

"You must have had other things on your mind," said Castiel. Dean turned to look at him, and saw the light playing in his eyes.

"Hey, don't you start, now," he said.

"Dean, have I ever told you that angels don't have a mating season?" asked Castiel airily. Sam looked between the two of them, an amused grin playing at the corners of his mouth

"Mating season?" prompted Sam, with all the  _where do babies come from_ innocence of a little kid.

"Shut up," said Dean, blushing crimson.

"We don't reproduce, Dean," Castiel intoned. 

" _Reproduce?_ " asked Sam delightedly.

"Shut  _up,_ " said Dean. Sam saw Castiel break into a grin. He clapped the angel on the shoulder.

"You're a Winchester, for sure," said Sam.

Neither brother missed the way the angel glowed with pleasure at his words, just as they were pulled away from the sunny Scottish mountainside.

***

" _Baby!_ "

Dean ran to his car in a burst of enthusiasm, while Sam and Castiel looked on. Sam nudged Castiel with his elbow.

"Hey," he said quietly. "Thanks. I don't know the details -  _please God never tell me any details_  - but I do know that Dean's loved you for a long time. I think you make him happy."

Castiel nodded his acknowledgement.

"Thank you, Sam," he said. "I have always felt the same."

The two of them smiled at each other, and then went to the car, where Dean was lovingly checking over the entire thing, inside and out.

"I thought you might enjoy a real vacation," said Castiel. "I spoke with Pele and Poli'ahu. Because we were so respectful, they say we are welcome here, and to enjoy our time as guests on the island."

Dean grinned and punched the air. He slid behind the wheel, and Sam got into the car as Castiel climbed into the back. He revved the engine, just because he could.

"So, whaddaya say?" Dean asked. "Beach?"

The Impala tore out of there like a thing on fire.

***

The ocean swells were a deep blue Dean had never seen outside of cleaning products. He knew that wasn't a fantastic comparison, but his life was full of a lot more cleaning products than poetry, and it was really all he knew to compare it to.

He leaned back in his deck chair, the cold beer in his hand, droplets of water coursing down its sides.

His other hand was occupied with holding Castiel's, who sat beside him in another chair.

"Hey, guys!!" came Sam's voice, filled with excitement. "There's  _tide pools_ down here! I think I found a sea cucumber -  _ugh gross it threw up its stomach on me!!_ "

Dean and Castiel laughed.

"Careful there, Sammy," he called.

He looked over at Castiel, who was giving him a look filled with love, and the promise of something more.

Out in the water, a Hawaiian woman was surfing a wave. Slowly, her hand came up in a  _shaka_ greeting, as the sun turned the world orange and violet, and the sun set behind the waves.

Dean sighed, content. 

He looked down at his hand, where the blue light gently pulsed around his finger, and the little wisp of smoke extending to wrap around Castiel's.

On the beach, surrounded by palms, covered over with a blanket of stars, he understood the meaning of eternity, and he welcomed it with open arms.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Wow! This has been a fun ride!
> 
> I've been to both Keck Telescope and to the part of Scotland said to be inhabited by the Cailleach. I've always felt that the show never seems to explore enough of the other parts of America, or other countries where much of the folklore they deal with originates.
> 
> Thanks so much to everyone for commenting, it really spurred me to finish this one. I'd had the beginning in my files for months and thought I should do something with it. I've enjoyed this journey. I hope you have too!


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